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Euro 2020 Rewind: Scotland holds England, Sweden beats Slovakia and more

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Euro 2020 action continued Friday with two of the tournament’s most competitive groups, and one of the group stage’s most anticipated matches.

Every team in Group D gained a point, with Czech Republic and Scotland earning creditable draws against favored sides Croatia and England. Czech Republic’s Patrik Schick is the tournament’s top scorer in the early running with three goals in two matches.

Slovakia stayed even with Sweden for much of their Group E encounter, but Sweden’s attacking prowess paid off late with Emil Forsberg scoring the decisive penalty kick.

Look back on the action from the seventh day of Euro 2020:


England 0, Scotland 0

Scotland earned a point against England in the first competitive installment since 1996 of one of the world’s oldest sporting rivalries.

Scotland managed only 40 percent of possession, but still shot 11 times. Both teams finished with only one shot on target.

One of the best chances of the match came in only the 10th minute, when England centerback John Stones sent a header off the post.

The dropped points are cause for disappointment for England, which started the tournament well with a 1-0 win against Croatia.

The result for Scotland means hope is alive to progress from Group D. England will face Czech Republic Tuesday in a match that will determine the winner in the group.


Croatia 1, Czech Republic 1

(Patrik Schick 37′ (penalty)) – (Ivan Perisic 47′)

Bayer Leverkusen striker Patrik Schick and Czech Republic continue to keep things interesting in Group D, holding Croatia to one point and putting the 2018 World Cup finalists’ hopes for progression in doubt.

Schick, his nose bloodied from an elbow by Dejan Lovren which resulted in the VAR penalty call, scored from the penalty spot to give the Czechs the advantage.

Inter Milan forward Ivan Perisic saved the point for Croatia with a powerful strike from the left side of the box shortly after halftime.

Czech Republic enters the final group stage game against England with four points, two ahead of Croatia. Czech Republic can guarantee progression with a result against England, but could progress on goal difference anyway.


Sweden 1, Slovakia 0

(Emil Forsberg 77′ (penalty))

Emil Forsberg’s converted penalty kick ensured Sweden its first win at Euro 2020. Sweden controlled the match most of the way, and Slovakia failed to record a shot on goal.

Progression to the knockout rounds from Group E remains in the balance for all four teams, but Sweden has impressed so far at Euro 2020 with a win and a strong defensive showing against Spain in a scoreless draw.

Now, the Swedes pile the pressure on Spain to beat Poland on Saturday. Spain can equal Sweden’s four points with a win, and Slovakia remains surprisingly in contention with three points thanks to an opening win over Poland.

Comments

  1. Don’t know if anyone here cares, but I thought England were pathetic. They seemed to be playing as if a 0-0 draw was their desired result. They had no drive or passion, rarely posed a threat, and stood around a lot when they had the ball.

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    • I was wondering if anyone saw 2 d-mids playing CB for Scotland. Good strategy for Scotland, because England couldn’t attack the back line effectively!

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    • They’re back to being old England again. Probably should have seen this coming since they’d have been hard-pressed to axe Southgate after all that goodwill from 2018, but the reality has always been that he’s tactically inept and way too conservative for the attacking talent they have. The players also don’t seem as willing to run through walls for him like they did in Russia. Most of their goals against quality sides are still coming almost solely from set-pieces, and they barely earned any yesterday. Having watched most of their recent qualifiers and friendlies you can just tell something is missing…namely real belief, but also the right blend of lineups and deployment. I was a bit surprised at how much “favorite talk” they were getting.

      And then Southgate’s subs, sure bring Grealish on, but to take out Foden? And then Rashford for Kane didn’t make a ton of sense either. And that was it. He used two subs. How Sterling got a full 90 while Sancho sat the whole match is beyond me.

      Clarke did a way better job selecting a lineup and with his tactics and the Scots were a bit unlucky to not nick all three points. Southgate has England headed to a brutal R16 defeat at the hands of probably Germany or France although I’m not entirely sure the Czechs won’t beat/draw the Three Lions and change England’s path.

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